Decorating 101: 10 Furniture and Décor Tips for Homeowners

by | Aug 22, 2014 | blog, Home

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Your new home is ready and it’s time to move in. If you’ve rented a home before you built your new residence, you likely already have plenty of furniture to move in with you. However, it’s often a good idea to refresh your furniture for your new home.

In this guide, we’ll share 10 simple furniture and décor tips to help make your new home a truly special place to live. From rugs and sofas to plant life, read on to learn the basics of furnishing and decorating your new home.

Mix large and small furniture

The best living spaces are all about balance. Large three-seater sofas are balanced by small but stylish armchairs; light rugs are balanced by dark furniture. Make sure your home décor mixes large and small for a sense of scale, comfort and balance.

Furnish around one focal point

From the living room to the bedroom, every room in your home should make use of a single focal point that all furniture revolves around. Pick one point – from your TV to a large window or fireplace – and position sofas and chairs to point towards it.

Buy for the next few decades

Buying ultra-stylish furniture might seem like a good idea, but what’s fashionable in the present can easily look outdated and silly in the future. Instead of buying chairs, sofas and furniture that’s cutting edge, stick to classic styles that last for decades.

Focus on simple furniture

The more complicated an armchair, sofa or bedframe is, the more likely it is to wear down and work less effectively over time. When you’re buying furniture, remember that the simplest pieces will usually last the longest without any issues.

Plants add life to your home

Does your living room, bedroom or bathroom feel a little too lifeless? Adding a plant or two is a great way to introduce life into your home and give your living space new character and comfort.

Low budget? Get creative

If you’re decorating on a low budget, creativity will help you create an interior that’s memorable and interesting. Get creative and develop an innovative interior by using everyday items in place of classic decorating ‘necessities’.

Stick to one colour scheme

Colour is one of the most important factors in interior design, and creating a stylish but consistent colour scheme ahead of time will make decorating your home far less of a challenge. From natural to modern, choose one colour scheme and stick to it.

Measure for the perfect fit

One of the biggest mistakes first-time homeowners make is buying furniture that’s too large for their home. Keep a record of your home’s interior dimensions and buy furniture that gives you plenty of space to manoeuvre inside your home.

Use renewable materials

Your home is made from eco-friendly materials, so why isn’t your furniture? Buying eco-friendly furniture has a massive number of benefits, the biggest if which is your consistent commitment to helping the environment through your home.

Don’t be afraid to break the rules

From colour schemes to scale, many of the ‘rules’ of interior design can be broken in the right circumstances. If you like a certain sofa, armchair or other furniture that is ‘incompatible’ with your design plan, don’t be afraid to break the rules and buy it.

How did you decorate your home?

Have you recently built a new home? If so, what rules did you use to decorate and furnish it when you moved in? From colour ideas to your favourite armchairs, add your thoughts on interior decorating and design in the comments section.

Read through our useful guide for more information

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